Kratype

Kratype is a theoretical framework in linguistic typology and cognitive science that seeks to classify languages by a compact set of typological dimensions, producing a kratype profile for each language. It emphasizes cross-linguistic comparability and predictive potential for language processing and learning.

The term arose in scholarly discussions in the 2010s as a simplification of broader typological inventories. The framework posits that a language's grammatical system can be represented as a vector in a low-dimensional kratype space, where dimensions capture structural tendencies such as argument order flexibility, morphological synthesis, and alignment strategies in syntax.

In practice, researchers assign values to each language along the dimensions, generating profiles used in cross-language surveys, typological mapping, and computational modeling for parsing and generation in multilingual systems. The approach has informed large-scale typology databases and synthetic data generation.

Critics argue that reducing diversity to a small set of axes risks masking internal variation and diachronic nuance. Proponents respond that kratype profiles function as heuristic tools, best used alongside detailed descriptive analyses. The concept remains under development, with debate over the exact dimensions, measurement methods, and interpretive limits.